2024, Term 1, Week 6

Weekly Assembly

Principal Message

Dear Families, 

Welcome to Week 6 Term 1. We  are currently in the season of Lent. Lent holds significant importance in Catholic Primary Schools, providing a profound educational opportunity for students. It fosters spiritual growth, teaching them about self-discipline, sacrifice, and empathy through practices like fasting, prayer, and almsgiving. It reinforces core Catholic values of compassion, forgiveness, and repentance, preparing children for a deeper understanding of Easter and Jesus Christ's sacrifice. Lenten activities such as Stations of the Cross, penance services, and community service projects engage students in meaningful reflection and service to others. It instills a sense of belonging to the wider Catholic community and encourages personal growth in faith and virtue.

In this newsletter I have shared with you an overview of our core school values. For us embodying the values of Respect, Responsibility, and Courage is paramount. Respect forms the foundation of our interactions, fostering an environment of empathy and understanding. Responsibility teaches students to take ownership of their actions and choices, cultivating accountability and integrity. Being Courageous instills the bravery to stand up for what is right, even in the face of adversity, reflecting the teachings of faith and morality. These core values guide our students to become compassionate individuals who contribute positively to their community, embracing the principles of Catholic education and nurturing a spirit of service and kindness.

Enjoy the weekend ahead.

Warm Regards,

Brian Laybutt
Principal

Farewell

Today (Friday 8th March) is Mrs Mathewson's last day at St Ambrose. Mrs Mathewson has accepted a three year contract to work within the Catholic Education Office at Tweed Heads as an Educational Officer. This position will allow Mrs Mathewson to work across all schools within the Tweed Region and support them in the area of Teaching and Learning. We thank Mrs Mathewson for her outstanding contribution to the school and for the commitment and professionalism that she has displayed. It is hoped that we welcome her back in 2027!

Welcome back

Mrs Chelsea Carter will return from Maternity Leave on Monday 11th March. We are all looking forward to having Chelsea back at the school, she will resume her position as Assistant Principal - Teaching and Learning

School Awards

You may be aware that the school has changed its awards for 2024. Three awards are given out to students from each class. These awards are based on our three core school values of being RESPECTFUL, RESPONSIBLE and COURAGEOUS. Below is a guideline of what these words mean when put into action. Teachers often refer to these and are reminding students about our school expectations and values. 

Morning Duty

Just a reminder that morning duty commences at 8.30a.m. Students should be arriving at school between 8.30 - 8.50a.m. We have a lot of students arriving at school very early in the morning - some before 8.00a.m. As indicated, teachers are not on playground duty until 8.30a.m., therefore children arriving before this time are unsupervised. If you need to drop your child off early, please enquire with our Before School Care Service - Little Grommets, for a morning position on 0411199049.

Religion

Sunday 10th March

STS MARY & AMBROSE CHURCH, POTTSVILLE SCHOOL/PARISH FAMILY MASS  7:30am MASS

Sacrament of Penance/Reconciliation Commitment Mass (This involves children from Year 4 who are preparing to receive this Sacrament)

At this Mass celebration staff from St Ambrose will be attending to the ministry duties and there will be children’s liturgy. 

WE HOPE TO SEE MANY ST. AMBROSE FAMILIES AT THIS MASS

THESE STUDENTS WILL MAKE THEIR FIRST RECONCILIATION ON WEDNSEDAY 20^Th MARCH, 6:00PM AT ST ANTHONY’S CHURCH, KINGSCLIFF.

Sacrament of Penance/Reconciliation meeting

On Monday 26^th Feb in the evening we had a wonderful Parent/Child Sacrament of Penance/Reconciliation meeting. Thank you to the wonderful parents and students who came along to this meeting. It is lovely to see the students being supported by their families during this special time of preparing for Sacraments.

Sunday 17th March - Feast Day of Saint Patrick

St Patrick is the Patron Saint of the Diocese of Lismore. He was successful in preaching the Gospel and converting much of Ireland to Catholicism. Over the years many Irish priests, nuns, and brothers have worked in the parishes and schools of our Diocese.

As God sent Saint Patrick to teach the Gospel to the people of Ireland, so may we bring peace and joy to others.

Tuesday 19th March St Joseph’s Feast Day

On this day we remember Joseph, husband of Mary and father of the Holy Family.

St Joseph was courageous in taking on the responsibility of becoming the husband of Mary and the legal father of Jesus and all that those two roles entailed.

As we follow Joseph in the Gospel, we see how he could turn a difficulty into a possibility with his trust in the providence of God.

Incitáre

On Tuesday the 5th of March nine Year 6 students went to a retreat called Incitàre.

Incitáre was a chance to share our journeys of faith, listen to others and strengthen our relationship with God. We made new friends and we reconnected with old ones. Our scripture theme was “ And let us consider how to provoke one another to love and good deeds, not neglecting to meet together, but encouraging one another.” HEBREWS 10:24.

We enjoyed playing games, doing activities and discussing in our small groups. At the end, after our amazing day we were anointed by our group leaders, the St. Josephs Year 10 students, and were presented with small tokens to remember our great experience.

Lent

During this time of Lent may we come to know Jesus more deeply and to live in His truth. We pray that we become the people Jesus calls us to be, a welcoming community alive to relationships of justice and peace.

Parish Newsletter

School Value's Award Recipients

DIO Swimming

We would like to congratulate a number of students who travelled down to Macksville last Friday to compete in the Diocesan Swimming Carnival. All 7 students raced incredibly well and our school should be very proud. 

We would like to congratulate Wren who placed 2nd in the Junior Girls 50m Breastroke and Darragh who placed 2nd in the Junior Boys 50m Backstroke. Both Wren and Darragh are now off to Sydney to represent Lismore at the Polding trials. We wish them all the best!

DIO AFL Trials

Lismore Diocesan AFL selection trials were held in Grafton on Friday 23rd February. This year saw a very good group of talented, skilled boys from throughout the Lismore Diocese attend this event. Congratulations to Lincoln who has been selected on the Polding Team. He will attend Polding AFL selections at Warners Bay, Newcastle on Tuesday, 9 April 2024.

Cross Country

Information regarding Cross Country will be sent out in the coming weeks. Please see attached course outline and event schedule. We cannot provide start times for each age group. 

We do require 10 course helpers. If you are able to assist by being a course judge/helper please contact Miss King.

Jelly Cups

This week has been a busy one for Year 5!

On Tuesday we got to deliver our Solar Buddy Fundraiser jelly cups and Freddo Frogs to all the wonderful students who purchased them. It was a great chance for us to show our leadership skills as we worked in groups to deliver the goodies to all of the classes around the school. A huge thank you to all the parents and students who purchased and donated for this very worthy cause. 

Clean Up Australia Day

On Wednesday afternoon Year 5 participated in a Clean Up Australia Day session. We started at school where Mr Bottle gave us some excellent information on recycling and rubbish collection. We spent some time cleaning up the passive play area and then it was off to the beach! Miss King and Mr Palamara were joined by Mr Townsend and two parent helpers and we walked over the bridge to Pottsville beach where we cleaned up as much rubbish as we could find. 

A special thank you to two of our wonderful parent helpers Rachel Derbyshire and Erin Burr who gave their time to assist us at the beach.  It was an awesome experience and we were so happy to be doing our part for the community.

School Photo Day

K-2 Easter Hat Parade

New English & Mathematics Curriculum & Parent Magnet

As you may be aware, our K-2 educators began implementing the revised NSW English and Mathematics syllabus in 2023. This academic year sees our teachers from grades 3-6 now enacting the new curriculum into classrooms. This transformative shift is a direct result of the curriculum reform set in motion by the NSW Government Curriculum Review in 2018, representing the first comprehensive review of the NSW curriculum in thirty years. Our teachers have received professional learning to ensure the new curriculum is implemented with fidelity and will continue to build upon their professional knowledge and understanding to ensure the best outcomes for all students.  

One effective method to stay engaged with your child's education is by asking relevant questions about what they're learning in school. You might recall that last year, we distributed magnets to families during our 3-way student-led structured conferences. These questions are designed to spark conversations and prompt discussion about what your child/ren is learning. These magnets serve as a helpful tool to facilitate meaningful engagement between yourselves and your child/ren regarding their academic experiences. 

The following 5 questions are suggested to provide opportunities for informative conversations with your child.

What did you learn today?
How did you do?
What did you do if you didn’t understand?
How can you improve your learning? 
What are you most proud of? 

We encourage you to use these to foster learning conversations at home. Staff and students have a similar scaffold they use to enable students to reflect on their learning within the classroom. These questions are aimed at ensuring students can articulate what they are learning and why, while also fostering students to become assessment-capable learners. They not only help support students in the classroom, but they also offer insightful feedback for the teachers to ensure that the learning experiences cater for each child. These resources have been developed to support teachers, students, and parents in using a common language around learning achievement and progress.  

New families and Kindergarten parents will be issued with these magnets. 

NAPLAN

A reminder that all students in Years 3 & 5 will undertake the upcoming NAPLAN assessments in Week 7. The dates for these assessments are as follows: 

Writing - Wednesday 13th March
Reading - Thursday 14th March
Conventions of Language - Thursday 14th March
Numeracy - Friday 15th March

All students will need to have the NAP Locked Brower installed on their iPads, a pair of headphones, and a keyboard. Please contact your child’s classroom teacher should you have any concerns.

We will all of our Years 3 & 5 students participating in this National Literacy and Numeracy assessment well.

Farewell

I would personally like to say a heartfelt THANK YOU and farewell to all of the wonderful parents and students here at St Ambrose. Whilst I am moving into a new role within the Catholic Schools Office, I will be forever grateful for the years that I have spent here learning alongside you, your children, and the very dedicated and passionate teachers we have here at our school. I look forward to regularly visiting and keeping updated about all of the wonderful learning and memorable moments that happen here at St Ambrose! 

Kimberley Mathewson
Acting Assistant Principal- Learning & Teaching

Congratulations

Congratulations to Year 6 students Kynan, Jack and Amber for being successful in gaining a position in the CSO Mathematics and English Extension Groups run by the diocese. Kynan, Jack and Amber will work with like minded peers and high school teachers within the diocese to extend their knowledge on their chosen area. This is a wonderful achievement for these students! 

Jessica Wilson 
Leader of Pedagogy (Acting)

Parent Talk Resource

Parent Talk newsletter aims to provide parents and carers with relevant and timely information about parenting, education, wellbeing, upcoming CCSP events and webinars for parents, and significant Catholic news and events.

The Council of Catholic School Parents NSW/ACT represents all parents and carers of students in our Catholic schools. We value and promote the critical role that parents play in the education of their children, and provide leadership, advocacy and support for parents and carers of children in almost 600 Catholic schools.

Parents and carers are invited to subscribe to CCSP’s Parent Talk newsletter to receive future editions and keep up to date with how our Council supports Catholic school parents to support their children’s wellbeing, faith journey and academic outcomes.

Click here to subscribe.

Make getting students to school on time every day a top priority.

Attending school regularly helps children feel better about school and themselves. Ensuring that students arrive at school on time every day is crucial for their academic success and wellbeing. Parents play a crucial role in instilling the importance of punctuality in their children. Here are some strategies for parents to make getting students to school on time every day a top priority:

• Establish a Consistent Routine. Set a daily routine that includes specific times for waking up, getting ready, having breakfast, and leaving for school. Consistency helps children develop good habits.

• Model Punctuality. Children often learn by example. Demonstrate the importance of punctuality by being on time for family events, appointments, and other commitments. 

Limit or Have No Screen Time in the Morning. Minimise distractions such as excessive screen time in the morning. This helps your child stay focused on getting ready for school without unnecessary delays.

Privacy Collection Notice

Compass online family & enrolments

Dear Parents,

Our school has moved to online enrolments using Compass. Applications for 2025 owards can be completed from the link below. If you have already applied via our old system, we kindly request you please reapply.

Existing users of Compass, will find a new tile in the Compass app called Family and Enrolments, under the “More” icon in the Compass app or under the Cog icon in your preferred browser.  As a parent, you can update your contact details at any time. We strongly encourage you to log in to confirm your details. If you update your details, they will update across all schools where you have a child enrolled.

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